I want to begin by thanking the member of Mr. Stossel's staff for replying to me. I know they have a lot to do and are busy, and no, I'm not being facetious. Here it is:
Hi Chris,
If those alternatives to corn ethanol work, then shouldn't they be profitable? In that case, hopefully we will be seeing them soon. Thanks for writing in,
Maxim Lott
Stossel Unit
So I replied:
They are profitable now, and that's under the current set of circumstances. Imagine how much more profitable when they renovate our pipeline infrastructure, so that they can carry ethanol without corroding. In fact, on January 14th, ScienceDaily.com posted an article showing that a University of Nebraska-Lincoln study on ethanol from switchgrass showed that switchgrass not only has a much higher ethanol yield than corn does, but also it produces "540% more energy than needed to grow."
Further, ethanolproducer.com recently posted an article on their website about a solid waste plant in Gary, Indiana that will convert garbage into gasoline and will save taxpayers $12 million a year in landfill fees. It willl also create 120 jobs.
Lastly, why does Mr. Stossel (whom I've always had great respect for, I loved his "Sick in America") not mention that the domestic oil industry is subsidized? Is oil, therefore, worthless and no good? Thank you for replying to me.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Debt
So I'm here at work, talking to a friend of mine, and he tells me his brother was going to go to a trade school and they would provide him with financing for the 2 year program. Assuming 100% financing, his debt when he graduates would be $44,000.
He refused it, preferring not to have any debt on his name. He does not even like or have a credit card.
Now, I am not a total 100% Dave Ramsey-ite. But I do find merit in the guiding principle.
We as a society have become swamped in debt for everything, from our house, our cars, our tvs, appliances, shoes, etc, etc.
That is why we are in the credit crunch. Because people get themselves into more debt than they can afford, and then they have to go talking to one of those "credit counseling services" that they hear ads for on the radio.
In the midst of all these constantly traded-in-for new cars, 40 inch plasma tv's, and all the latest IPOD and IPOD-like toys, but life insurance outside their job? Forget it. Savings?? Retirement funds?? College savings plans for their kids?? No way.
Again, I am not a Dave Ramsey-ite, not all the way anyway, but when you buy something (other than a house) you need to be able to put down at least 10%, minimum, 10%.
And I'll leave you with the words of Mr. Ramsey, "You know you're a loser if -- you live at home with your parents at age 30 because your Hummer that you couldn't really afford is parked in their driveway."
He refused it, preferring not to have any debt on his name. He does not even like or have a credit card.
Now, I am not a total 100% Dave Ramsey-ite. But I do find merit in the guiding principle.
We as a society have become swamped in debt for everything, from our house, our cars, our tvs, appliances, shoes, etc, etc.
That is why we are in the credit crunch. Because people get themselves into more debt than they can afford, and then they have to go talking to one of those "credit counseling services" that they hear ads for on the radio.
In the midst of all these constantly traded-in-for new cars, 40 inch plasma tv's, and all the latest IPOD and IPOD-like toys, but life insurance outside their job? Forget it. Savings?? Retirement funds?? College savings plans for their kids?? No way.
Again, I am not a Dave Ramsey-ite, not all the way anyway, but when you buy something (other than a house) you need to be able to put down at least 10%, minimum, 10%.
And I'll leave you with the words of Mr. Ramsey, "You know you're a loser if -- you live at home with your parents at age 30 because your Hummer that you couldn't really afford is parked in their driveway."
Thursday, April 3, 2008
As Tax Day approaches
Many Americans who have until now been procrastinating will scramble to either sit down and do their own taxes, or fork out the cash for H&R Block.
An ordinary working person should be able to just sit down and figure out his/her taxes in less than 5 minutes, but alas, this is not the case.
We have in this country, between personal and corporate taxes, a tax code 4 times longer than War and Peace. It's 2.8 million words according to Professor Michael Graetz, in a November 2004 editorial in the New York Times.
The easiest thing in the world for taxes would be to have a Flat Tax a la Steve Forbes' proposal. Let's allow every inidividual to earn $30,000 per year, and his/her deductions are the $30 k allowance, retirement account contributions, health insurance premiums/health savings account contributions, and a deduction of $2500 per child/dependent. After all of these deductions, a rate of 15% would be paid on remaining income, if any.
Both the $30,000 allowance AND the $2500 child/dependent deductions MUST be indexed for inflation, so that we don't find ourselves in the same debacle as we currently do with the Alternative Minimum Tax.
Having this standard 15% rate in place would prevent people like John Kerry and Teresa Heinz-Kerry from doing what they did in 2003, which was to earn $6.8 million and only pay $700,000.
Warren Buffett recently complained the tax code is unfair, stating he pays a lower rate than his secretary. Well don't worry, Warren, that problem would go away under my system.
And uh, hey Warren, by the way, you don't need to write the government a check, but if you wouldn't mind, could you write me a check for say, $26 grand so I can finally stop having to pay my student loans. Appreciate it, buddy.
Personal taxes aside, let's also remember that the Good Ole' U.S. of A has the second highest corporate tax rate in the world. That needs to change. That needs to be lowered.
An ordinary working person should be able to just sit down and figure out his/her taxes in less than 5 minutes, but alas, this is not the case.
We have in this country, between personal and corporate taxes, a tax code 4 times longer than War and Peace. It's 2.8 million words according to Professor Michael Graetz, in a November 2004 editorial in the New York Times.
The easiest thing in the world for taxes would be to have a Flat Tax a la Steve Forbes' proposal. Let's allow every inidividual to earn $30,000 per year, and his/her deductions are the $30 k allowance, retirement account contributions, health insurance premiums/health savings account contributions, and a deduction of $2500 per child/dependent. After all of these deductions, a rate of 15% would be paid on remaining income, if any.
Both the $30,000 allowance AND the $2500 child/dependent deductions MUST be indexed for inflation, so that we don't find ourselves in the same debacle as we currently do with the Alternative Minimum Tax.
Having this standard 15% rate in place would prevent people like John Kerry and Teresa Heinz-Kerry from doing what they did in 2003, which was to earn $6.8 million and only pay $700,000.
Warren Buffett recently complained the tax code is unfair, stating he pays a lower rate than his secretary. Well don't worry, Warren, that problem would go away under my system.
And uh, hey Warren, by the way, you don't need to write the government a check, but if you wouldn't mind, could you write me a check for say, $26 grand so I can finally stop having to pay my student loans. Appreciate it, buddy.
Personal taxes aside, let's also remember that the Good Ole' U.S. of A has the second highest corporate tax rate in the world. That needs to change. That needs to be lowered.
Apartheid state of Israel segregates American citizens
Thanks to James Zogby, head of the Arab American Institute, of which I am a card-carrying member. Israel, in its apartheid ways, is denying Palestinian Americans (even if they were born in America) the right to travel there under a US Passport, telling them if they travel that they are to use a Palestinian passport, and we all know how many rights that will give them. Here's what Mr. Zogby wrote:
For thirty years now, I have been demanding that my government, in Washington, protect and defend the rights of its citizens of Arab descent when they travel to Israel and the Palestinian lands occupied since 1967.
I never felt that this was an unreasonable request to make, nor did I feel that it should have been difficult to fulfill. It was not a sensitive or complicated policy matter, like the "thorny" issues of settlements, land confiscations, collective punishments or other violations of international law. Even these the U.S. has, at times, criticized, though been loathe to act more decisively to stop.
What I have asked of the last five administrations was, quite simply, to do what any government is required to do; and that is, to protect and defend its own citizens and, in this case, require Israel to live up to its treaty obligations.
The U.S. passport, the prized possession of any U.S. traveler, says quite clearly on the opening page: "The Secretary of State of the United States of America hereby requests all whom it may concern to permit the citizen/national of the United States named herein to pass without delay or hindrance and in case of need to give all lawful aid and protection."
There is also the 1951 Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation, signed by the U.S. and Israel, in which Israel agrees that U.S. citizens traveling there be permitted "to travel therein freely, to reside at places of their choice; to enjoy liberty of conscience...and to bury their dead according to their customs." The Treaty also prohibits "unlawful molestations of every kind," and guarantees U.S. citizens "the most constant protection and security."
As many Arab Americans and most especially those of Palestinian descent will testify, this treaty has been "honored more in the breach than in the observance." Over the many years that I have worked on this issue, we have recorded countless cases where Arab Americans (even those with U.S. diplomatic passports) were detained at entry and exit, treated harshly and in a humiliating manner, and in some cases held for hours and subjected to long and often humiliating interrogation. Palestinian Americans, even those born in the U.S., have been forced to surrender their U.S. passports. Israel requires Palestinian Americans, even those born in the U.S., to secure a Palestinian travel document upon entry and exit. Others have been denied entry when attempting to visit their families; while still others have been denied the opportunity to remain with their families, bury their dead in ancestral plots, or conduct normal business on family-owned properties.
At times, past administrations have intervened in individual cases, some burials were allowed, some visas were given or extended. Former National Security Sandy Berger, and former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, and, more recently, Secretary of State Rice, have raised this issue directly with the Israeli government, but the problem remains because the Israeli behavior persists.
It appears that Israel has its own view of U.S. citizenship, seeing three classes: American Jews whom they see as having "birthright advantages," other U.S. citizens who are respected and protected, and then, finally, Arab Americans whose rights as U.S. citizens Israel does not fully recognize.
In somewhat tacit acknowledgement of this shameful attitude, the U.S. State Department has issued a travel advisory for U.S. citizens going to the West Bank and Gaza in which they state the following: "American citizens whom Israeli authorities judge (based on their name or other indicators) may be of Palestinian origin are likely to face additional, and often time-consuming, questioning by immigration and border authorities. ...persons judged by the Israeli authorities to have claim to a Palestinian Authority ID are subject to Israeli law and regulations that apply to residents of the West Bank and Gaza, regardless of the fact that they hold U.S. citizenship. ...In addition, American citizens considered to have or to be eligible for a Palestinian ID who entered Israel via Ben Gurion Airport might be required to depart via the Allenby Bridge to Jordan." (emphasis added)
In response to what can only be described as Apartheid treatment, the U.S. government rather lamely adds in its advisory that, "the U.S. government seeks equal treatment for all American citizens regardless of national origin or ethnicity. American citizens who encounter difficulties are encouraged to contact the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv or the U.S. Consulate General in Jerusalem...."
After my organization in Washington wrote to the Secretary of State (in a letter signed by 29 other Arab American organizations) protesting this state of affairs, the department spokesperson, at a press briefing, responded more forcefully saying that, "Our view,...is that an American citizen is an American citizen is an American citizen. There are no second classes. ...You have a blue American passport, you should be treated like an American citizen. ...We expect all American citizens to be accorded the rights that any other American citizen would be accorded." To that, I can only add, "Amen."
The question arises, however, what the U.S. government would do when its expectations are not met. I have been waiting for an answer to that question for more than thirty years.
For thirty years now, I have been demanding that my government, in Washington, protect and defend the rights of its citizens of Arab descent when they travel to Israel and the Palestinian lands occupied since 1967.
I never felt that this was an unreasonable request to make, nor did I feel that it should have been difficult to fulfill. It was not a sensitive or complicated policy matter, like the "thorny" issues of settlements, land confiscations, collective punishments or other violations of international law. Even these the U.S. has, at times, criticized, though been loathe to act more decisively to stop.
What I have asked of the last five administrations was, quite simply, to do what any government is required to do; and that is, to protect and defend its own citizens and, in this case, require Israel to live up to its treaty obligations.
The U.S. passport, the prized possession of any U.S. traveler, says quite clearly on the opening page: "The Secretary of State of the United States of America hereby requests all whom it may concern to permit the citizen/national of the United States named herein to pass without delay or hindrance and in case of need to give all lawful aid and protection."
There is also the 1951 Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation, signed by the U.S. and Israel, in which Israel agrees that U.S. citizens traveling there be permitted "to travel therein freely, to reside at places of their choice; to enjoy liberty of conscience...and to bury their dead according to their customs." The Treaty also prohibits "unlawful molestations of every kind," and guarantees U.S. citizens "the most constant protection and security."
As many Arab Americans and most especially those of Palestinian descent will testify, this treaty has been "honored more in the breach than in the observance." Over the many years that I have worked on this issue, we have recorded countless cases where Arab Americans (even those with U.S. diplomatic passports) were detained at entry and exit, treated harshly and in a humiliating manner, and in some cases held for hours and subjected to long and often humiliating interrogation. Palestinian Americans, even those born in the U.S., have been forced to surrender their U.S. passports. Israel requires Palestinian Americans, even those born in the U.S., to secure a Palestinian travel document upon entry and exit. Others have been denied entry when attempting to visit their families; while still others have been denied the opportunity to remain with their families, bury their dead in ancestral plots, or conduct normal business on family-owned properties.
At times, past administrations have intervened in individual cases, some burials were allowed, some visas were given or extended. Former National Security Sandy Berger, and former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, and, more recently, Secretary of State Rice, have raised this issue directly with the Israeli government, but the problem remains because the Israeli behavior persists.
It appears that Israel has its own view of U.S. citizenship, seeing three classes: American Jews whom they see as having "birthright advantages," other U.S. citizens who are respected and protected, and then, finally, Arab Americans whose rights as U.S. citizens Israel does not fully recognize.
In somewhat tacit acknowledgement of this shameful attitude, the U.S. State Department has issued a travel advisory for U.S. citizens going to the West Bank and Gaza in which they state the following: "American citizens whom Israeli authorities judge (based on their name or other indicators) may be of Palestinian origin are likely to face additional, and often time-consuming, questioning by immigration and border authorities. ...persons judged by the Israeli authorities to have claim to a Palestinian Authority ID are subject to Israeli law and regulations that apply to residents of the West Bank and Gaza, regardless of the fact that they hold U.S. citizenship. ...In addition, American citizens considered to have or to be eligible for a Palestinian ID who entered Israel via Ben Gurion Airport might be required to depart via the Allenby Bridge to Jordan." (emphasis added)
In response to what can only be described as Apartheid treatment, the U.S. government rather lamely adds in its advisory that, "the U.S. government seeks equal treatment for all American citizens regardless of national origin or ethnicity. American citizens who encounter difficulties are encouraged to contact the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv or the U.S. Consulate General in Jerusalem...."
After my organization in Washington wrote to the Secretary of State (in a letter signed by 29 other Arab American organizations) protesting this state of affairs, the department spokesperson, at a press briefing, responded more forcefully saying that, "Our view,...is that an American citizen is an American citizen is an American citizen. There are no second classes. ...You have a blue American passport, you should be treated like an American citizen. ...We expect all American citizens to be accorded the rights that any other American citizen would be accorded." To that, I can only add, "Amen."
The question arises, however, what the U.S. government would do when its expectations are not met. I have been waiting for an answer to that question for more than thirty years.
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